Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Everyone who has read my blog knows I've been to Scotland. It was the trip of a lifetime and I enjoyed it so much. The country is beautiful. The light there makes it impossible to take a bad picture. And the people are lovely.

We have glorious mountains here in our country. Here in Kentucky, they're huge but nothing can compare to the mountains in Scotland. They truly look like they've been carved by giants. They were actually carved by glaciers moving across the landscape.

I intend to return there one day.

My book Timeless is set in Loch Maree, Scotland an area in the heart of the Highlands. My friend Mitsi and I went there for a day just so I could see the area and scout out the place. But I wasn't disappointed. It's gorgeous there. People were everywhere, hiking and fishing.

If you'd like to learn more about the area. you can go to this blog I posted when we got back from the trip.
It's a beautiful place and just right to set a story in. I wrote about the Pub/Inn we saw there.

I wanted to get the feel of the place and the people of Scotland and I think I captured it.
I'm posting an excerpt from my book Timeless that is more than a paranormal romantic suspense but one of those special cross-genre books that has timetravel, reincarnation, and science fiction, as well as action and romance in it all blended together. So here it is.

Loch Maree, Scotland 2011

Don’t panic. Don’t panic.

The mantra played through Regan’s mind like a prayer as she propelled herself through the turbid water with strong even kicks. Heavy sediment clouded her range of vision and gave the water a greenish cast. It reflected back the feeble glow of the watertight dive light she held clamped in her hand. The grayish scales of a lone fish sparkled as it swam within the small, illumined circle, then darted away along the brown bottom of the loch.

It looked as though she’d been dropped on a waterlogged moon, desolate and distant. Her face ached from the cold temperature of the water, but her dry suit kept her reasonably protected. She forced herself to stop and take stock of the situation. She’d lost her dive buddy, Henry, in the haze, but still had her compass and remained on course. Her heart beat hard against her ribs, and she tried to slow her breathing. He’d been right beside her only moments before. Where could he be?

She checked her depth gauge. She’d been at a hundred and forty feet for nearly five minutes searching for him, four minutes longer than she should have stayed. She’d have to surface soon. Five minutes on the bottom could eat into the air she needed to decompress.

He’d be looking for her, as she’d been doing for him. She should have never pushed him to dive with her. Her desire to see the stones may have put Henry’s life at risk. And her own. She had to find him.

Regan looked at her tank pressure. Would he continue on to the site before surfacing? She could make it to the location and see if he’d made it there.

The loch bottom rose in a knoll with little vegetation. Regan swam up and over the rise. The ground dropped steeply away, giving the sensation of a bottomless maw opening up to swallow anyone or anything that swam over its lip. An electric fission of renewed fear raced down her body. Her sense of isolation intensified. She heard her father’s voice in her head. Stay calm. She turned her attention to the task at hand.

She had to be close to the cofferdam. The dark blue panels of the structure should be right before her. How could anything that stood two hundred feet tall and stretched half the length of a football field be so difficult to find? She resisted the urge to look up. In her current situation, the sight of so much water overhead might make her fear worse. She already found it difficult to control her breathing.

Checking her wrist compass again, she found the needle bouncing back and forth erratically. She gave it a vigorous shake then held it as still as possible. There was something wrong with it. Had it been somehow damaged on the flight to Scotland? She swallowed back the panic that threatened to close her throat. What more could go wrong during this dive?

If she found the cofferdam, she’d find something onto which to tie her emergency line. She followed the concave edge of the drop-off for a short distance. Through the cloudy water rose the dark corrugation of the cofferdam. She quickly swam forward and rested a rubber-gloved hand on the metal. The height and breadth of the structure appeared like a benevolent mountain looming over her. Constructed of interlocking vertical steel pilings, the temporary dam gave the impression of blocking out what little light permeated the water overhead.

Dirt and stone littered the landscape along its side. Had the process of sinking the metal sheets bubbled up the debris, or had some other more natural occurrence caused it?

The water made the structure appear to lean toward her. Dwarfed by the dam’s looming height, she struggled to suppress her cloying claustrophobia. She swung her dive light back and forth, searching for any sign of Henry. The ground gave way to a long downward slope. She drifted, following the deep ruts cut into the bank.

At the sudden inexplicable increase in the water temperature, she hesitated. It didn’t feel like a natural current, but warmer, like a hot spring. Had the seal along the wrists and ankles of her dry suit broken, she would be experiencing the chill of the water, not a surge of warmth. For a moment, the circle of illumination her dive light provided seemed to expand as some of the sediment cleared. Worry brought a hollow emptiness to the pit of her stomach. Where was Henry?

She couldn’t search any longer. She’d secure an emergency line, release her buoy, and follow it up. And hope and pray Henry had already surfaced. She looked below for something on which to fasten her line.

Just beneath her, white PVC pipes delineated a grid around the site. Nearly all the squares blocked in showed signs of digging. In the center of the underwater dig, a long, rectangular object, gray-black in color, lay on its side in the mud. It appeared that the hieroglyphs marking the surface of those already recovered were absent on this one. That couldn’t be right.

Regan swam down and rested a gloved hand on the block. A cloud of sediment kicked up obscuring visibility, but the deep recessed edge of a design became evident beneath her fingertips. Her satisfied sound forced bubbles from her mouthpiece past her ear.

Water and mud sealed off the stones protected by the cofferdam above ground. And until the scaffolding was completed, she could only view them from a distance. But these she could touch. And what could it hurt?

Regan pulled loose her glove and tucked it beneath her weight belt. The water temperature seemed warmer than when she had entered the loch. The pitted surface of the rock felt slick and slimy.

The sensation of warmth intensified to a prickly static that tingled almost painfully against her bare skin. She tried to lift her hand and break the contact, but her palm felt welded to the top of the stone. Fear bit into her, sharp as an eel’s teeth. Pinpricks traveled with liquid speed up her arm to her shoulder and across her chest. Was she having a heart attack? Was she experiencing an embolism?

Burning heat raced to the rest of her extremities. A current of power surged like electricity through her entire body. Energy hummed along her nerve endings like a dance of fire until it reached her groin. Regan groaned as an orgasm hit her with such intensity she bowed her back. Jets of sensation rolled outward from the very depths of her body. She remained locked to the stone, yet she was projected someplace else as well. In an instant her consciousness splintered.

The water cleared, and blue sky appeared above her. She drew a deep breath. The smell of burning peat, strong and acrid, settled on her tongue. She was home. In the distance, stood a stone hut, its roof thatched, and smoke curling from the chimney. Home. The familiar sight sent joy spiraling through her. Her heart beat with excitement as she waded through the tall grass, the blades catching at her skirts and pulling at her stockings.

***

Quinn Douglas awoke with a start, a strangled cry on his lips. It was just a dream. He squinted against the glare of the setting sun and threw up a hand to block it. The fishing pole he held in his right hand hung slack. He straightened his neck and grimaced as the crick hit him. God, his sleep deprivation was worse than he’d thought if he could fall asleep sitting on deck fishing. His heart drummed against his ribs. His hands shook as he reeled in the line and set aside the pole.

Leaning forward, he rested his elbows on his knees and rubbed an unsteady hand across his face. Jesus, the sodding dreams were killing him. He hadn’t had a decent night’s sleep since he and his crew had arrived at this bloody place. All night he searched for some illusive thing he’d lost. Or he awoke painfully aroused craving the woman’s body he’d dreamed of. Who the hell was she? Some composite woman his subconscious had invented or someone he’d seen on the telly?

This dream had been especially weird. She had lain still in a clear pool, her eyes staring up at him. A shudder racked him. It reminded him too much of his parents. Their eyes had been open, empty, staring. Looking into the unknown.

He struggled against the loss, abandonment and anger that accompanied the memory.

A stiff breeze whipped across the deck pushing against Grannos’s hull. The two hundred and thirty foot salvage vessel pulled against its anchor, but barely rocked. The rain-laden air smelled crisp and cool. A storm would reach the area by evening.

He turned to look over his shoulder, eastward where the lumbering mass of Slioch Mountain stretched rocky and barren behind him. Its drab gray-brown contrasted with the thick cluster of deep green Scots pines nestled at its base. Since it was Sunday, the diving crew hired for the dig were ashore. They had planned a hike on Slioch. At least he wouldn’t have to worry about them depressurizing and boarding during a storm, but they might get wet anyway.

His focus shifted to the dark blue steel cofferdam constructed only sixty-eight meters from where Grannos lay anchored. The structure shot four meters into the air above the water line. Its interlocking panels held back the loch and kept it from flooding the area until a more permanent structure was devised.

The constant sound of the pumps inside the cofferdam bounced across the loch. Jets of water spewed over the side of the structure into Loch Maree, churning the water and spreading a strip of mud across its surface. The silt made visibility miserable below, but it hadn’t kept him from catching enough trout for dinner.

Along one side, the land sloped, allowing him to see the edge of one stone and part of the lintel that rested atop it. Uneasiness churned in the pit of his stomach every time he looked at the place. He rubbed the back of his neck and rolled his shoulders trying to release the tension of his muscles and the crick in his neck.

Staying aboard Grannos for a few hours of quiet and privacy had been a good idea, even though he’d ended up stewing all afternoon about the dreams and the bloody rocks. Why did he find the limestone slabs so disturbing? He’d made a journey to Stonehenge some years past and had experienced no sense of wariness or discomfort there.

His cell phone rang and he fished it out of the case on his belt and looked at the number. He swore, then replaced the phone without answering. Marissa could call until doomsday. He wasn’t interested. He was working on the biggest archaeological dig since Stonehenge, and she’d been turned away. There was justice in the world. A wry grin twisted his lips.

He lifted the cooler next to him and carried it aft to the worktable bolted to the deck. With a knife from the galley he began cleaning and scaling the fish. A clanging of metal against metal drew his attention and he laid aside the blade. He moved to the rear of the boat and looked over the rail to the diving platform.

A diver shoved a large underwater dive light across the metal scaffold out of the way, then grasped the railing of the stage and attempted to drag himself aboard, his movements clumsy. Quinn removed the panel that sealed off the platform from the deck and stepped out. Grasping the man’s tank harness, he added his strength to the diver’s and wrestled him onto the scaffold.

The diver ripped the mask from his face and looked up at him, his eyes wide. “Is Regan aboard?” His accent, distinctly American sounded clipped. His freckles stood out against the paleness of his skin like splotches.

“No one’s aboard but me,” Quinn answered.

“She’s in trouble. I know it. We got separated and visibility is terrible. I searched for her for nearly five minutes. But you can’t see shit down there. I finally had to break off to surface.”

Concern ripped through Quinn. “How long have you been down?”

“Twenty minutes.”

Quinn swore under his breath, his mind weighing possibilities. “How much gas did she have?”

“She’s got double eighties.”

“Air?”

“Yeah.”

“To what depth were you diving?”

“We were aiming for a bounce dive of fifteen minutes at two-hundred feet. But it’s already been longer than that.”

Quinn swore again. Sodding foolish girl. God save him from reckless Americans. “What’s the position you were aiming for?”

“The stones.”

Quinn stared at him. Dread tightened his shoulders and brought a thickness to his throat. He’d known the damn rocks would be the death of someone. More than likely he’d find the lass drowned, if he found her at all. Jesus. A clammy sweat broke out on his skin. He didn’t want to do this. But there was no one else.

“I’ll get my gear.”

I hope you enjoyed the excerpt. If you're interested. Here are the links and the blurb.

Archaeology student, Regan Stanhope, lands the chance of a lifetime when she’s chosen to work on a summer dig in Loch Maree, Scotland. The ancient monoliths hidden beneath the loch are the most important discovery since Stonehenge. And for seven hundred years, they have been waiting—for her.

Saturation diver Quinn Douglas is contracted to recover some of the megaliths from the loch’s bottom. The job will breathe life into the struggling salvage business he and his brothers are building. But from the moment he arrives, Quinn is plagued by dreams and feelings from a past he did not live. Or did he?

Regan and Quinn are drawn to each other as they research the monoliths and the reason behind their shared visions. But both sense something mystical at work, delving into their minds, manipulating their emotions. And when they finally discover the monoliths’ extraordinary secret, they know they must seal them away from those who are desperate to unlock their power. Even if it means remaining caught in a timeless struggle between the past and present forever.

Friday, April 22, 2016

I'm always interested in the male perspective about things. So, I decided to ask the men of my SEAL Team Heartbreaker's Series what makes a man a good lover? Knowing they could be a little salty in their language, which doesn't bother me at all, I was braced for some graphic answers. What I got in answer to my question surprised me in some ways and didn't in others. After all I've known these guys for a while now.

We decided to do these interviews on Hawk and Zoe's sun porch. The hot tub is covered, but just a hint of chlorine lingers. The shades are raised and a breeze wafts through the screens surrounding us, bringing with it the smell of fresh cut grass and the clematis that's blooming on a trellis just outside. I love the old fashioned metal glider I'm sitting on and catch myself setting it in motion even though I'm trying not to. I finally just give into the desire and rock while I'm talking to the guys.

Lieutenant Adam Yazzie aka Hawk from Breaking Free.
Just an aside. It's difficult to sit across from him and concentrate on what he's saying. Just being in the room with someone this gorgeous certainly boosts my libido. Zoe Yazzie is a LUCKY lady.
Back to Hawk:

"I know because Zoe, my wife, has scars due to a drunk driver hitting her when she was a child, that people might think that impacts our sex life, but it doesn't. I don't see the scars when I look at her.
And she definitely has physical attributes that I find attractive and–stimulating."

He flashes a smile and I have to take a breath. Those pale gray eyes take on an intensity as he thinks things through. He's been out in the sun and he's tan and fit. His dark hair falls over his forehead. The chiseled slope of jaw is sexy as hell.

"There are times when she just looks at me and says my name and that's all it takes. So, the question is what makes a man a good lover..." he pauses to formulate the words. "When you're able to look beneath the superficial and recognize there's something more than a meeting of bodies. There's a connection both physical and emotional that encourages you to meet your partner's needs and you get everything you want back in return."

Whoo. I'm fanning my face. A guy in touch with his emotions is sexy as hell.

Next up is Brett from both Breaking Through and Building Ties. He has the most piercing blue eyes. He's let his hair grow out and it's bleached by the sun so it has lighter streaks. He's dressed in jeans and a t-shirt that hugs his chest and shoulders just the right way. He has a little scruff along his jaw.

I need one of those battery powered fans.

"All Tess has to do is walk into the room and I'm ready. But what makes a man a good lover?" He lowers his eyes to his scuffed tennis shoes and smiles. "Tess and I have been through some dark times together. It doesn't get any darker than being accused of murder and shot by a terrorist. And she was injected with heroine by a crazed asshole and nearly died. Jesus, I really thought I'd lost her."

The emotion I read in his face grabs me by the throat and I have to blink quick to keep from embarrassing myself.

"When we first met she took everything seriously. Now when she laughs—it's the greatest sound and it—turns me on. I can't get enough of it or her. I'm gone a lot of the time, so the time we're together I really want to make her happy. So, I think what makes a man a good lover is wanting to satisfy your lady's desires more than you want to satisfy your own."

He smiles again and there's a kind of sexy humor lighting his eyes. "It doesn't hurt that you get to reap the benefits of that selflessness. In the SEALs we learn a job worth doing is one worth doing right. So, I try to do my best in that regard every time."

I think I swallowed my tongue.

Flash is a blond too and his eyes are a darker more cerulean blue than Bretts. He's just returned stateside from a deployment and has cropped his hair short. It leaves the strong masculine lines of his face bare. He's clean shaven and I have to say he has an almost perfect jawline. Though he's not as easy to smile as the other guys, when he does it packs a punch.

I begin our discussion by saying, "I read about your difficulties with the rogue FBI agent and the cartel boss he was in bed with. I'm sorry what happened caused you to lose your place on Hawk's team."

"I am too, but I'm still a SEAL and I'm still on a team, which after everything that happened is a freaking miracle. Actually, Brett and I are on the same team now but we haven't worked together yet. I'm sure when we do, it will be just like it was back in the day. He's a fine operator."

"From what I hear, you are too."

He looks away as though the compliment embarrasses him, then grins and some of the cocky confidence, all of the guys I've met so far have in abundance, comes through.

"You want to know how a man becomes a good lover." He shifts in his seat and tilts his head. "My fiance Samantha's first husband was abusive. He didn't just beat her, he stalked her as well. She wouldn't mind you knowing that because she knows that was no shame on her. It was all on him. He was a narcissistic psychopath. He was killed when he shot through a door in an attempt to kill her and wouldn't lay down his weapon. He really believed that if he couldn't have her, no other man would."

He falls silent for a moment. "What makes a man a good lover is making sure your lady feels safe with you. Safe enough to explore what makes her feel good and safe enough that she wants to make you feel good, too. Safe enough that she allows you to try different things to please her."

When he looks up, I feel my face growing hot with a blush. And he grins again.

To cover my embarrassment, not because of what he said, but how his tone has affected me, I ask, "Does that include a little Chippendale dancing now and then?" I'm dying to know if he really did shed his uniform for her that first night out of the brig.

"Sam says I'm getting good enough to go on the road with them if I ever decide to leave the SEALs."

At five eight, Oliver Shaker is shorter than the other guys but he makes up for any issue that might cause in pure determination. It's written in every line of his well-toned body. He appears a little more self-contained than the others. Not that any of them are forthcoming with any state secrets. But he's quiet. His warm brown eyes gleam with a look of keen interest. His close-cropped hair curls against his head. He holds his cards close to the vest. I can't figure out a thing he's thinking.

I start out by asking him how his wife Selena is doing.

"She's doing great. She's done with all her treatments and has finished the reconstructive surgery she needed. Her last check up was perfect."

"I'm so glad. It will be a real relief for our readers to hear that. And how's the baby?"

"Micah's growing like a weed and getting into everything in the house. We've had to batten down the hatches."

"I'm so glad. He's a miracle."

He nods. "That's what Selena calls him."

"Well, do you feel comfortable answering my question? This subject would be especially personal for you after everything you and Selena have been through."

"Yeah. Breast cancer is a fucking scourge." There's anger in his voice and pain. "But we fought back and Selena won the battle." He pauses and his throat works as he swallows. "I never stopped loving her or wanting her. Even when she was bald from taking chemo and had zero energy because of the radiation. Even when she had no breasts. She was still my Selena. The hormone suppression drug she's on affects a lot of things for her. But we've learned to work around that."

"I think what makes a man a good lover is knowing that being a lover doesn't start and stop in the bedroom. It's making sure the lady you're with knows she's loved and desired before you ever hit the sheets. It's something that can be threaded through everything you're doing, whether you're just watching a movie together or cooking dinner. Making love is more than the physical act, it's the build up to it, too. A touch here, a kiss there, just listening when she talks and showing some interest in her creates a slow escalation that's well worth it."
He looks up and there's a clear conviction in his gaze. "I think foreplay is way underrated by most guys. And they don't know what they're missing."

Wow! He's had me nearly in tears and hot as a sun-baked rock in a matter of minutes.

Corporal Callihan Crowes isn't a member of the team but he's in a relationship with Kathleen, 'Doc' O'Connor's sister. And he's an ex-Marine and gave a leg in the service to his country, so I think he qualifies to be included in this blog.

His unusual blue-green eyes hold a cautious light as he studies me. He's done interviews with the press and even though I know him, he's still a little wary. With his scruff covered jaw and lean muscular body he's sexy as hell.

He dives right in eager to get it over with.

"What makes a man a good lover? You know I didn't have a clue when Kathleen and I first met. I thought I did, but I didn't, not really."

I'm surprised he's said that. Totally unexpected.

"I was all torn up about body image and so was Kathleen. She'd been shamed by so many people about her weight and I have my scars and the leg being gone isn't really something you can ignore."

He shoots me a cocky smile and I want to laugh out of pure joy because he's come so far.

"I have these friends. Julio and Hector. They gave me some advice about women and I acted on it, then I got so addicted to pleasing Kathleen and getting her—jump-started, I couldn't stop. Didn't want to stop."

I'm mentally fanning myself.

"I learned that my lady is a very visual creature. If I could plant a sexual idea in her head, it just keeps churning away in there."

"And just how did you do that?" I ask.

"I shared my fantasies with Kathleen, shared the way looking at her made me feel. And I made sure she knew it was her that starred in those fantasies, that triggered those feelings. Only her."

"I'm not saying you don't need good technique to go along with all the talk, but being honest and sharing those sexual thoughts and feelings, sure ups the expectations on both sides. It kind of inspires both of you to please each other."

"So a man can be a good lover if he pays attention to detail and tells his lady what role she plays in his fantasies and desires. But then he makes it all about her. Because it should be." He smiles, a slow sexy tilt of the lips that shoots sensuality straight at me. "Then she'll make it all about him."

OMG! is all I can say.

Ensign Zach 'Doc' O'Connor is up next. And even though his book isn't out yet, I had to include him in this blog. He swung by to use Hawk's hot tub because of an injury and I've looped him into answering my question before I clear out so he can get in.

He's very masculine. His freckles and auburn hair may make him appear boyish at times, but he's every inch a warrior. His Irish green eyes don't miss much.

"What makes a man a good lover?" He narrows his eyes at me in thought. "Piper and I haven't been together long. And she's had some bad luck with men. I'm not at liberty to expand on that because it's her story to tell."

"She's had some trust issues, with good reason. But so have I after being dumped while deployed and then learning the woman I was involved with, got pregnant by another man while I was gone." He looks up toward the door leading in from the kitchen. "None of the guys know that, yet. I'd appreciate it if you'd keep that to yourself until I'm ready to tell them, if ever."

"I won't say anything," I promise.

"Thanks." He falls silent for a long moment. I don't rush him because he might decide not to tell me.

"I think what makes a man a good lover is patience. Everyone's always in a rush to maneuver their way to bed and get the deed done. Hard and fast has its place too—if that's what your lady wants. But there's more to be said for long, slow, thorough kisses and just as thorough hands. You know to extend the pleasure as long as you can."

I think I've swallowed my tongue again.

Zach's and Piper's book will be out in September.

Thanks to my SEALs, Hawk, Brett, Flash, Oliver, and Zach and a special thanks to Cal for swinging by as well. They are all truly heartbreakers. Because they're already taken. Darn it.

In case you're interested in learning more about them and their ladies, My SEAL Team Heartbreaker Box Set that includes books 1-2- 3, Breaking Free, Breaking Through, and Breaking Away is on sale right now. 1141 pages of romance, suspense, and action for $4.99.

And in case you're interested in the other books too Breaking Ties (Oliver and Selena's Story) Building Ties (A full-length Brett and Tess novel that introduces Brett's new team) And Breaking Boundaries (Cal and Kathleen's Story) here are the links to all those.

Sunday, April 3, 2016

Young Adult Romance Author Amy Durham has a new release out April 11, 2016. I wanted to help her spread the word. This is the second book of the Resolution Series.

Gabe Jenkins has a secret…

Nobody knows that Gabe Jenkins comes from money… and from scandal. And he wants to keep it that way. He’s perfectly happy managing Ugly Mug, a coffee shop in Flagstaff, Arizona, leaving his trust fund untouched and his past in Kansas City buried.

That is until Rachelle Taya finds herself in desperate need of money.

Rachelle comes from nothing. The daughter of a single mother who barely scraped enough together to keep them fed, Rachelle knows the meaning of hard work and hard times. Finally standing on her own two feet, the last thing she wants is charity. From anyone.

Gabe’s had his eye on Rachelle for some time. Tired of waiting for her to get the hint, Gabe steps up his game. Their romance is just beginning when news of Rachelle’s long-absent, no-good father surfaces, drowning her mother in a major financial crisis. Gabe has the means to make her problems go away, but that will mean revealing his past and bruising Rachelle’s pride. Can he find a way to help while still hiding his secret?

And when the truth is finally exposed, will their love be destroyed by Gabe’s secret?

GABE’S SECRET is book #2 in the “Resolution Series”, however, it can be read as a standalone.

Excerpt:

When Frank Sinatra’s voice slides smoothly from the speaker, my heart melts into a liquid mess of romance and emotion. Gabe wasn’t kidding about his love for classic jazz.

“Is that a whole playlist of Sinatra?” I ask as he walks toward me holding out his hand.

“It is.” He takes my hand and pulls me to him, his other hand settling on the small of my back. Lifting our clasped hands to his lips, he places a kiss on my fingers before beginning to sway gently to the music.

Gabe sings along, and so do I, and over the course of several songs he spins me around the living room like a pro. I love this side of him, the fun-loving, wacky guy who can turn any situation into something to smile about. But then the music slows, and our laughter turns to soft, sweet gazes, as Gabe pulls me against him.

“I love this one,” he whispers, his lips grazing my ear.

“Me too.” I lay my head against his chest and snuggle close as the melody of When My Heart Stood Still floats from the speaker.

The air around us changes; becomes charged with a feeling of hyperawareness. I’m focused on every move he makes, every breath he takes. The press of his hand on my back becomes heavier. His breath against my ear becomes warmer.

Unclasping the hands we have twined together, he slides his fingers into the hair at the back of my neck. I lift my head to look at him just as his other hands moves from my back to come to rest against my neck. My breath stops… backing up into my lungs as I stare into his bright blue eyes.

It’s that moment of anticipation, when the excitement of knowing what’s coming but not knowing what it will be like consumes every molecule in your body. Part of me wants to stay right here, in this moment, for the rest of my life, but a bigger, stronger part wants desperately to finally know the feel of Gabe’s lips on mine.

And as the Sinatra’s words ring out - about a man taking one look at a woman and his heart standing still - Gabe finally lowers his head.

The first press of his mouth is tender, a gentle brush of lips that steals my breath and makes my heart stutter. And then he sinks deeper into the kiss, tilting my head to the side and urging my lips open. Carefree Gabe is nowhere to be found, but in-charge Gabe is all over me.

The other day when I was disappointed that he didn’t kiss me after Harrison’s interruption? Yeah, I’m not complaining anymore. I can’t imagine anything more amazing than this first kiss.

I snake my arms around his back, my hands kneading the muscles there. His hands finally leave my neck so that his arms can wrap me up in their strength. I have no idea how long we stand there tangled up together. The song changes several times, but neither of us pays attention.

Everything else just fades away in the maelstrom of Gabe’s kiss.

The kiss slows, and gradually Gabe pulls back, just enough so he can look at me. He leaves our foreheads and noses pressed together and then smiles, his blue eyes sparkling in the afterglow.

ASHER'S MARK will be going free 4/10 and 4/11 in celebration the release of GABE'S SECRET!!! So snap it up!!

I've read both books and I love Amy's voice. If you're a reader of Young Adult Romance, these need to be on your book shelf.

An update on Breaking Out: I've just passed 200 pages on the next SEAL Team Heartbreaker book. Busy building the relationship between Piper Bertinelli and Ensign Zach O'Connor aka Doc and continuing Cal and Kathleen's story.

Here's the design for my magnet for Doc. I have magnets for each one of my SEAL Team Heartbreaker books. Can't wait to get this uploaded. And add some more eye candy to my refrigerator. Here's the working blurb for the book:

Navy SEAL Ensign Zach O’ Connor is facing another deployment when he is injured during training and forced to take time off to heal. When a military war dog darts in front of his car and Zach can’t avoid hitting her he meets veterinarian Dr. Piper Bertinelli. In spite of his instant attraction to the beautiful doctor, Zach was dumped before, and isn't interested in a long-term relationship. His past attachment interfered with his ability to do his job and nearly cost him his career. He’ll never allow feelings to make him lose sight of what really matters again.

Violence and heartache have nearly shattered Dr. Piper Bertinelli’s life, and the last thing she needs is to get attached to a military man scheduled to deploy. She’s drawn to Zach first because he reminds her of her ex-fiancé, and then more so because of his natural charisma. But Zach doesn’t want a commitment. He wants a distraction to fill his days until he goes back to his unit. Unable to resist, she convinces herself it will be harmless to date him until he deploys, but keeping her emotional distance isn’t natural or easy.

Piper's office is burglarized, and several dogs are stolen. She and Zach race to track the animals and discover who is responsible before they can be killed or sold. But when Piper is kidnapped, Zach finds his feelings are the only thing he has to go on. And he’s depending on them to lead him to the woman he loves.

Tentative release is June. I'll keep you posted as soon as the book is finished.

Favorite links

About Me

Hi:
I'm Teresa Reasor. I'm a retired art teacher, college instructor and now a FULL TIME writer!! I've been published since 2007. My Muse's Musings is dedicated all my writing related endeavors. Books, book signings, some of the research I've been doing for my books and my adventures. I hope you enjoy my blog